nagpurpolice Chapter 193, Section 192: Tom's Conspiracy, Ian's Time Travel
Chapter 193, Section 192: Tom's Conspiracy, Ian's Time Travel
Chapter 193, Section 192: Tom's Conspiracy, Ian's Time Travel
The air in the underground chamber was so thick it was almost viscous, and the tip of Ian's wand gleamed with a deep, eerie light, illuminating the pale face opposite him.
Harry Potter.
Or rather, it was the remnant soul of Voldemort possessing Harry's body. At this moment, the boy's eyes had snake-like vertical pupils, and his cold eyes lacked reason and emotion.
have to say.
Faced with such a scenario.
Ian's emotions were quite turbulent—if the people here are Harry and Voldemort inside Harry, then who is the Harry in the ward that Nick Flamel is looking after?
A fake?
No.
A magically created double might fool other wizards, and even a few professors at Hogwarts, but it could never fool Nick Flamel, the master of alchemy.
"So, it must be Harry..." Thinking of this, Ian felt he had a sudden realization. He immediately sorted out his thoughts and frowned.
"You used the time machine to deceive Nick Flamel?" Ian thought back to the time he accidentally activated the time machine, when Harry Potter was also in Nick Flamel's office.
If Harry Potter discovered the secrets of the time machine, then Voldemort, hidden within Harry Potter, would obviously also know what happened in the alchemy office that night.
Although Nick Flamel used some tricks to lure Harry away to protect the information from the time machine, the fact that Harry, who knew very little about the wizarding world, could be fooled doesn't mean Voldemort was so ignorant. Based on Harry's memories from that night, Voldemort probably already knew and was planning to use this miraculous creation within Hogwarts.
"You are very clever, much cleverer than I thought." Voldemort's response confirmed Ian's guess. He stared intently at the young wizard in front of him with an extremely gloomy look.
but.
However, they dared not make the first move.
Perhaps because he shared Harry's memories and had used Harry's body to move around Hogwarts at night, he was well aware of the young wizard's strength.
Without a fully resurrected self, it's unlikely that victory will be assured.
"Perhaps we can talk and make a deal. I have a lot of knowledge that you can't access at Hogwarts. I was the Horcrux that was created at the last minute."
"These Horcruxes were created at the last minute, at least until last year. Do you know what that means? It means that almost all of Voldemort's knowledge is in my possession."
"You will surely have a more glorious life because of this, and experience scenery you could never have experienced before. You should know that this is the wealth that Voldemort has accumulated throughout his life." Because he was wary of the young wizard's power, Voldemort, who had taken over Harry's body, wanted to use some bewitching methods to reach an agreement with Ian.
"Let me live! You will have everything!"
He spoke in a highly seductive voice. Such words might appeal to many, but Ian was clearly not among them.
"It's the same old story again. Don't you have any other tricks up your sleeve?" Ian rolled his eyes, his tone filled with undisguised contempt.
If he remembered correctly, Voldemort, who was resurrected last year, was also trying to bewitch him in a similar way. Perhaps all of Voldemort's Horcruxes thought that this was a temptation that wizards could not resist.
"I'm serious, I'm sincere. I'm willing to trade all of Voldemort's knowledge for my life," Voldemort, now wearing Harry's face, said in a hoarse voice.
"You are Voldemort."
Ian remained unmoved.
"Of course I'm a part of Voldemort, but that doesn't mean I have to become Voldemort... He was insane. From the moment he made that deal with Death to resurrect himself, we were destined to betray him. Or you could say that by making that deal, he betrayed all of our fragmented souls!"
Madness and rage surged in Harry's vertical pupils, but even more so, fear—fear of the Grim Reaper he spoke of, fear of the deal he made with Death.
"What kind of deal?"
Ian thought of Voldemort's brief resurrection last year, the special situation where he instantly possessed the strength to win. It was clear that the price Dumbledore mentioned had probably come true.
"Death never makes a losing deal; His forgiveness always comes with a deeper price, a terror more terrible than death," the remnant soul possessing Harry's body said vaguely.
It was as if he was wary, or perhaps hesitant to discuss certain information. Of course, even so, "Harry" still wanted to use this situation to make a deal with Ian.
"Let me live, and you'll gain this knowledge. Then you'll understand what my crazy past really betrayed." Harry's gaze was fixed on Ian.
The young wizard did not answer. His gaze swept over Pansy Parkinson, who lay unconscious in front of Voldemort, her hair disheveled on the ground as if she were about to die.
"You're saying you didn't kill my precious basilisk?"
Ian suddenly changed the subject.
This immediately alerted Harry.
"You're stalling for time!"
He glared angrily at Ian and roared, but all he got in return was a sneer from Ian.
"Use what little brain you have left. What trick do you think I need to use to stall you?" Ian shook his head contemptuously, raising his wand and opening his arms. The wand trembled slightly in his hands, not from fear, but from the accumulation of power, the force of a raging torrent about to erupt.
All I saw was...
The little wizard's lips curled slightly.
The long robe moved without wind, fluttering and rustling.
The next moment, a dazzling light erupted from the tip of his wand, and a ghostly blue flame suddenly burst forth, like a sleeping dragon awakening, instantly igniting the surrounding air. Immediately afterwards, raging flames soared into the air from all directions, instantly filling every corner of the entire secret chamber ruins.
It was a fire as blue as the deep sea. The raging flames burned fiercely, the tongues of fire dancing wildly, like countless angry snakes, frantically devouring everything in their path. The collapsed rubble crackled and popped under the intense heat.
It turned into dust, visible to the naked eye.
Magic surged within the young wizard, like a monstrous wave rising from an endless ocean. That power erupted from him, transforming into an invisible pressure that enveloped the entire space.
A chillingly powerful force permeated the air.
Are you provoking me?
Voldemort, now in Harry's body, stood opposite him.
His pale face appeared even more sinister in the firelight. A rare hint of fear flashed in his eyes, and the wand in his hand trembled slightly, as if resisting an invisible pressure.
"I'm asking you, how much of a chance do you think you have... to defeat me?" In the firelight, Ian's eyes were calm, with raging flames swirling around him.
Like the most loyal servant.
"Gurgle~"
That was the sound of swallowing. Voldemort, the one who once struck fear into the hearts of the entire wizarding world, was now feeling the intense pressure emanating from Ian. A hint of undisguised horror flickered in his signature snake-like eyes, and he unconsciously took a small step back.
"How can you possess such powerful magic!"
He let out an incredulous exclamation. Clearly, although he knew some things about Ian, his understanding of Ian was limited to the junior wizards at the school.
The memories of Voldemort, whom Ian killed, were not synchronized with him.
"That's not the answer I want to hear." Ian didn't reply, but merely raised his chin slightly, a cold smile playing on his lips. His gaze was like a knife piercing Voldemort's heart.
"Of course not me! It's that damned diary! It's that sixteen-year-old me! It pretended to be allied with me, but wanted to use me and the other soul in this body as sacrifices for its resurrection!"
Perhaps seeing Fiendfire rushing towards him, Voldemort, who had taken over Harry's body, immediately roared in panic.
He revealed information that completely surprised Ian: the Basilisk was killed by the remnant soul from the diary, and that diary even wanted to sacrifice Harry.
"That's interesting."
Ian raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat surprised.
He knew, of course, that Voldemort's intelligence would be increasingly consumed by madness as he progressed through the game, and that Riddle, in his teens, was certainly very intelligent. However, he did not expect that the Horcruxes could turn against each other.
This is probably related to the deal made by the Voldemort who was resurrected last year. Of course, compared to the infighting over Voldemort's Horcruxes, Ian is more concerned about his own grievances.
Why did he kill my basilisk?
The young wizard was convinced that the basilisk's soul could not be used for resurrection.
"Of course, it's so he'll have the strength to betray me!" "Harry" gritted his teeth, looking quite annoyed, and resentfully revealed the sins of his other self.
"At first, he and I were exchanging information and plotting together to break free from that terrible fate, so we devised a plan to release the Basilisk to attack the students at Hogwarts."
"It was a brilliant plan, a win-win plan. We could both have enough souls to sacrifice and become independent individuals, but he betrayed me in this secret chamber!"
"He said he didn't want to provoke the three most powerful people right now. His resurrection only requires me and the soul of the body I'm inhabiting. He wants to use magic to launch a sneak attack on me from behind."
"Unfortunately, he planned everything, but he didn't expect that I was always on guard against him. I know myself too well, so he was unable to kill me by using that student with weak magic."
Harry's tone was full of resentment towards "himself," and his vertical pupils also showed a look of shame and anger. It was clear that he regarded being tricked by "himself" as a great disgrace.
"Tsk tsk, infighting broke out, and you were even driven to this dark place by a younger version of yourself, secretly trying to sacrifice yourself. How am I supposed to evaluate your fate... It's truly pathetic." Ian made no attempt to hide his sarcasm, but his nonchalant remarks caused "Harry's" expression to twist drastically.
This guy tried several times to raise the wand that should have belonged to Harry.
But in the end, I held back.
Despite the madness and bloodlust that filled his mind, the last vestiges of reason reminded the remnant soul of the Dark Lord that Ian's immense and terrifying magic was a force he could not contend with before his resurrection.
Left with no other choice.
This remnant of Voldemort's soul could only desperately try to defend himself.
"I saw through his plot! I evacuated the secret chamber in time, leaving him and the basilisk there, and then chose this pure-blooded girl as my sacrifice."
His tone was quite impassioned, tinged with indignation.
"I choose to break free from fate! This is far superior to his strategic thinking! He was created too early, and he still harbors fear; he simply wouldn't dare to do what I did!"
"He's not just a traitor, he's a coward, a timid coward!" Because of the ridicule he received, "Harry" began to belittle another Horcrux in order to elevate himself.
This is definitely a real dog-eat-dog fight.
"This is so much fun!"
Ian found the scene quite novel.
Seeing that he seemed to be in a good mood, "Harry" immediately seized the opportunity, looked at Pansy lying in the puddle on the ground, and his tone once again carried a hint of pleading.
"I have been honest with you about everything, so now can I truly come back to life? I can teach you and help you. Someone as powerful as you is bound to achieve something that will shock everyone. On your path of conquest, you will need helpers and followers, and I can be your helper and follower."
"A dark lord will follow you, and you will change the whole world." He continued to use his linguistic skills, attempting to paint a magnificent future for Ian.
This is certainly a tempting prospect for any ambitious person.
however.
Again.
Ian was not among them.
He certainly had ideals and ambitions, but none of them were related to conquering the world.
"You're right, you've been honest about everything, so our conversation should end here." Ian chuckled and flicked his wand slightly.
And so, the flames seemed to come alive.
They contain Ian's powerful magic and unwavering will; each flame is like a sharp blade, cutting through every inch of the air it sweeps across.
"You broke your promise! You damned bastard!" Voldemort's remnant soul roared and howled, his voice filled with panic and rage. He clearly regarded Ian as yet another traitor.
"I never agreed to your deal." Ian continued to urge the Fiery Flame on, and the flames grew stronger and stronger, as if everything in the ruins was being ignited at this moment.
"You despicable brat!"
Voldemort quickly raised Harry's wand and used magic to defend himself.
however.
It occupied Harry's body.
All he could use was Harry's magic. Although Mr. Saviour's talent was outstanding among his peers, it was somewhat lacking among adult wizards.
"All curses have ended!"
Voldemort initially tried to use this upgraded version of the "Stop the Curse" spell to extinguish Ian's Fiendfire, but his magic was too weak and insufficient to extinguish the Fiendfire condensed from Ian's supreme human magic.
Seeing that Fiendfire showed no sign of stopping, Voldemort's forehead was immediately covered in beads of sweat. He had no choice but to grit his teeth and use his most proficient dark magic.
"The Abyss has descended!"
Accompanied by Voldemort chanting incantations.
A thick black fog suddenly billowed into the secret room.
Countless souls emerged from the black mist, roaring and howling, forming a seemingly indestructible defensive barrier in an attempt to withstand the overwhelming raging fire.
The power of black magic lies in this: even without strong magical power or superb memory, it can produce powerful effects simply by paying the price of having one's soul corrupted.
The essence of most black magic.
In reality, it is a kind of "borrowing" of the power of other beings.
This is also the reason for the erosion—of course, for Voldemort's remnant soul, his soul was already in a state of disarray, so he didn't care about the cost of using dark magic.
All I saw was...
Countless souls, enveloped in black mist, rushed towards the raging fire.
They bared their fangs and claws as they swept towards the Fiendfire, trying to stop the deadly attack from getting close to "Harry".
However, even if this is dark magic, isn't Fiendfire also dark magic? This is Ian's most proficient domain, and Voldemort's remnant soul's dark magic is utterly ineffective in front of him.
To know.
Even Voldemort at his peak could not defeat Ian.
"Roar roar roar!"
Amidst the billowing black fog.
Faced with Ian's fierce fire attack, which was like a raging storm, this seemingly ferocious magic was as fragile as paper.
The fierce flames were like living flames, nimbly weaving among the dead. Each touch was accompanied by mournful howls and rising black smoke. Countless dead struggled in agony under the burning flames. As the flames scorched them, the dead gradually lost their form and turned into ashes that scattered into the air.
The overwhelming magic collapsed completely in the blink of an eye.
but.
Voldemort, who had taken over Harry's body, was not flustered. He had long realized that Ian's unreasonably powerful strength was insurmountable, so this magic was just a way to buy time.
Li Huo's steps were slightly intercepted.
He also took the opportunity to rush to Pansy's side.
"Do you want to destroy your classmates and this innocent little girl along with them?" Clearly, Voldemort's goal was to exploit the kindness of the second-year wizard.
He forcefully pulled the unconscious little witch from the ground and held her in front of him, pressing his wand against Pansy's neck, the green light on the wand seeming ready to burst forth at any moment.
Voldemort is gambling.
Students at Hogwarts value things like bonds, friendships, and camaraderie.
"Tch, you think I care about a Slytherin who has nothing to do with me? You think that's a threat to me? What do I care if she lives or dies?"
"You don't understand me at all, Voldemort. This little girl is just a worthless mortal." Ian's eyes revealed a hint of disdain and indifference.
The speed of the raging fire did not stop.
It was rapidly surrounding Voldemort.
"You don't care about her, but don't you care about Harry Potter? He's a hero in the wizarding world. You killed me, and he'll go with me to meet his death!"
Voldemort was taken aback by Ian's attitude. He hadn't expected Ian to be so resolute. Helpless, he could only shout at Ian while dodging the attacks of Fiendfire.
The life of a savior.
This was his last card.
"This is a necessary sacrifice, Voldemort, and I think Harry would be willing... for the greater good." Ian swung his wand violently, and a torrent of Fiendfire filled the entire Chamber of Secrets.
They were eroding Voldemort's hastily erected magical defenses.
"I will give Harry a dignified ending. He died fighting against you, falling alongside this little Slytherin girl in the battle against evil."
"This news will be in tomorrow's newspaper, and I might even receive an honor and medal as a reward for avenging them and defeating you."
Ian's expression was cold, his eyes filled with indifference, completely at odds with his rather mocking voice. His words, as if they were all preordained, were frantically provoking Voldemort's heart.
Harry looked on incredulously.
Ian added another bargaining chip.
"Tom, we have the same background, the same past... how can we not be the same kind of people?" With that, Ian controlled the Fiendfire to devour Pansy, who had been thrown down.
Blue flames surged and danced.
It teased Voldemort's taut nerves.
"No! You shouldn't do this! You shouldn't be so evil!"
Seeing Ian kill a classmate without hesitation, Voldemort felt a surge of fear and gradually realized that Ian was probably not the person he knew.
Right.
Back in his school days... he was quite good at disguising himself too. The more he thought about it, the more uneasy and terrified he became. Voldemort saw that his shield was about to be shattered by Ian's Fiendfire. He completely believed Ian's words and realized that Ian was different from those hypocritical white wizards. This young boy could really kill Harry, the savior.
"You win!"
Just as the shield completely melted away.
Harry could no longer contain himself, for he saw Ian raise his wand, and the familiar green light surged forth, its target the boy whose body he now possessed.
Fiendfyre could burn everything to death, so why did the other party use the Killing Curse? Voldemort immediately realized after putting himself in the other party's shoes that this was an attempt to frame him with his signature move!
That little boy on the other side is really willing to sacrifice the savior for fame and glory!
"Avada Kedavra!"
Ian's Killing Curse surged forth.
next moment.
Just as the magic was about to hit Harry.
"ah!!!"
Voldemort suddenly roared in agony, threw down his wand, and spread his arms wide. A black soul, like a twisted dragon, burst from Harry's mouth.
Filled with resentment and despair, it rushed towards the exit of the secret chamber. It was incredibly fast, and Fiendfyre gave chase but couldn't catch up, allowing Voldemort, who had used every trick in the book to survive, to escape to the exit.
"I'll remember you! I'll also..."
A venomous voice roared.
however.
Just as the black mist rushed out of the gate, attempting to regroup and make a comeback, its harsh words came to an abrupt halt, and a figure that had been waiting at the gate swiftly descended.
"Hehehehehe~"
It swallowed Voldemort's remnant soul whole, and before Voldemort's remnant soul could even react to what was happening, it had already swallowed and refined Voldemort's remnant soul.
The purple flames on the Black Phoenix's body began to burn exceptionally brightly. The digestion process was brief; after only a short while, the purple flames gradually faded.
Inside the secret room.
Ian once again felt a power flowing through his connection with the phoenix. His whole body was burning hot, as if his flesh and blood were on fire.
The familiar magic is growing.
The golden runes on his body flashed a few more times.
but.
The image in his mind did not become clearer as a result—his legendary path did not advance with the increase of magic power, which was definitely because the young wizard had not yet found a way to explore it.
"I told you the Illumination Charm was better than the Killing Curse." The young wizard looked at his wand, blew out the last bit of green light, and walked toward Harry, who had fallen to the ground because Voldemort had left.
very lucky.
Harry is still alive.
Although her soul was weak, it was not damaged. Ian turned to look at the dying flames. As the blue light faded, Miss Pansy Parkinson, who had been wrapped up, was revealed to be unharmed.
He certainly didn't kill the first-year student. Although Ian really didn't like Slytherin, he wasn't truly so depraved as to indiscriminately kill innocent people.
The little wizard was just acting.
He combined the words and actions of many people he knew, and his performance was very entertaining. The best way Ian could think of to save his two junior classmates in that situation was to pretend he didn't care.
The goal is to make Voldemort realize that none of the cards he's dealt are ones that can control Ian. Ian is betting that this Voldemort he's encountered this time isn't as sharp-witted as he was because he was the last Horcrux to be created.
As it turned out, he made the right bet.
Voldemort was completely fooled by him.
"What a terrible Tom, even worse than Ma Kui in that anti-Japanese war drama I watched." Ian walked over to Pansy, who was unconscious and had just been protected by Fiery Flame.
Compared to Harry.
Miss Parkinson's situation was even worse; her soul had been marked with some kind of sacrificial symbol, and although the sacrifice was not completed, she was still unable to awaken.
"However, this is something Dumbledore should be concerned about."
After checking Pansy's pulse and breathing, Ian decided to save his precious potion, since even if she drank it, Miss Parkinson's might not wake up. What's the point of doing a good deed if the person you save can't know? In Ian's dictionary, it's a foolish, losing proposition.
"Harry, are you alright?"
Ian did give Harry a potion; his potions were all top-quality, and soon Harry regained some color in his face and slowly woke up.
Mr. Savior opened his eyes, his eyelashes trembling.
"Where is this?"
His gaze was somewhat blank.
"Harry, Harry, I defeated Voldemort once again, saved you, saved everyone, saved our Hogwarts." Ian did not answer Harry Potter's question.
He just kept shaking the still weak Harry, and at the end of his speech he raised his voice and looked up – the little wizard was clearly shouting towards the castle above the Chamber of Secrets.
He believed that his good friend Hogwarts would remember his kindness once again.
"Again?"
The awakened Harry Potter still had some lingering memories.
He found himself lying on the surface of shallow water, his clothes soaked through, while Ian held a little witch who was also soaked and unconscious.
Mr. Savior's mind was really in a mess. When he saw this scene, his first reaction was not that he was lucky to have survived, but why he was lying on the cold ground while his classmate was being held by Ian.
Is it because I'm not Harley Quinn?
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
His bewildered mind was conjuring up all sorts of outrageous thoughts.
"Oh, I might have forgotten to tell you, I also defeated Voldemort last year, just like you, using the power of love. But this year I completely crushed him with sheer strength."
Ian regretted not having set up recording equipment before the battle, otherwise he would have loved to replay his heroic actions in the Hogwarts corridors 24 hours a day.
"The power of love..."
Harry struggled to his feet, shaking his groggy head. Just as Ian was about to explain in detail, he suddenly seemed to remember something.
Harry's face was pale, and his eyes were filled with pain and struggle.
Are you alright?
Ian, filled with suspicion, quickly went forward to check on the situation.
Just then, Harry suddenly knelt down, clutching his head tightly with both hands, as if something was surfacing in his mind, and fragments of memories began to appear in his eyes.
That was a phenomenon caused by the remaining connection between him and the Horcrux. However, since he was no longer a Horcrux, those memories were slowly fading away like shattered glass.
"The diary... Malfoy... What is he doing..." Harry's resilient qualities as the savior were on full display at this moment, even though his head was throbbing so badly that he felt like it was about to split open.
But he still managed to grasp what he saw and, with a voice that was almost too painful to speak, he spoke out the fragmented information to the senior student next to him.
"Hang in there, Harry. I know about the diary, and I know it used to be with Malfoy, but he lost it due to his carelessness."
"I think the lingering spirit residing in the diary sensed something was wrong and escaped." Ian checked on Harry's condition and could sense that Harry was going through a mental storm.
"No!"
suddenly.
Harry roared and grabbed Ian, who was supporting him. He gripped Ian's wrist tightly and looked up at Ian with a pained yet terrified expression.
"I'm talking about now! Right now!"
Harry screamed.
However, as time passed, the connection that served as a Horcrux completely dissipated, the fragments of memory began to slowly fade away, and Harry's expression gradually calmed down.
"Whoosh whoosh~"
He lay on the ground, taking deep breaths.
It felt like waking up from a long nightmare.
"Ian...I...I saw it...that person, that person took over Malfoy's body." Harry looked up, his head covered in sweat, his voice weak and trembling.
Fear still lingered in his eyes.
"It's like I've been possessed; we have to save him." Harry tried to prop himself up, clearly worried about Malfoy's predicament.
"Um?"
Ian was startled.
"Did you see him there?"
The young wizard quickly pressed for more information.
He certainly dared not ignore Harry's message; he realized the seriousness of the situation. The hidden diary might somehow have ended up back with Malfoy.
Is the most dangerous place the safest place?
No matter what.
Ian realized that he had been tricked by sixteen-year-old Riddle.
"The office... Professor Lemaître's office."
Harry revealed the information he had gleaned.
And it was this one sentence.
This caused Ian's expression to freeze instantly. His pupils contracted again, and an extremely unbelievable guess arose in his mind.
"Take Miss Parkinson back to the surface, then go to the school clinic. If you're still lying there, don't go in; find a place to hide."
"Voldemort will walk towards his own end. If you don't see yourself, take Miss Parkinson in for treatment and inform the head doctors about what happened to you."
Ian was alarmed by the absurd idea that popped into his head. He only had time to throw out a sentence that left Harry completely bewildered before he turned into a cloud of white mist and rushed out of the Chamber of Secrets.
What does it mean to "arrive at this end on its own"?
Harry was completely bewildered, unable to understand what Ian was talking about. However, he knew time was precious, so he didn't dwell on it and picked up Pansy, whom Ian had thrown to the ground.
"Can someone tell me which way to get out?"
Looking around, I saw a complete mess.
Harry also walked out the door.
Seeing the winding, labyrinthine passage ahead, he felt utterly helpless. Just as he finally found a direction to begin moving, he was startled by the sudden appearance of the serpent monster's corpse.
Harry almost threw Pansy, whom he was holding, out of the room.
"Who would build a place like this and raise such a monster?" Harry muttered, still shaken. He patted his chest and complained in a low voice. The next moment, he was startled again and almost jumped up.
"It's not a moral thing for a Slytherin student to complain about the founder's little world." A regretful sigh came from behind Harry.
Mr. Savior suddenly turned his head.
But then he saw a wooden figure made entirely of wood standing behind him.
Its eyes are lively.
He gazed at the surrounding mess with a touch of melancholy.
"Who are you!"
Harry quickly dropped Pansy, and poor Miss Parkinson rolled to the ground again. He had no choice but to free his hand to draw his wand.
He faced Harry's wand pointing at him.
The wooden figure shook its head.
"You're holding your wand upside down."
It offered a seemingly well-intentioned reminder.
Harry, blushing with embarrassment, quickly corrected his wand.
"Want me to teach you the Killing Curse right here and now?"
The wooden figure seemed very enthusiastic.
"I can burn you with a fire spell! Tell me! What are you?!" Harry was nervous and his mind was blank, but that didn't stop him from scaring the other person.
Actually, he hadn't even learned the pyromantic spell yet.
"Come to Hogsmeade Village and I'll tell you who I am... It's only because you're a Slytherin student that I wouldn't have given you this opportunity."
Leave this sentence behind.
Ignoring the tense Harry, the wooden figure walked straight to the chaotic Chamber of Secrets using its mechanical feet, arriving at the spot where the statue, now reduced to ashes by Fiendfire, had once stood.
"Luckily he took it."
Looking at the open, unobstructed cave, the wooden figure seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
……
The night was as dark as thick ink.
It was poured out of Hogwarts without reservation.
The deserted corridor, like a mysterious tunnel forgotten by time, is filled with silence and the unknown.
The dim wall lamps emitted a faint, flickering light, as if struggling against the encroachment of darkness, but could only outline a small, dim halo on the stone floor.
Suddenly, white mist rose from the second floor. Ian was very anxious; he seemed to have sorted out his thoughts—the basilisk's death was definitely not a coincidence.
According to the remnant soul within Harry, he left the remnant soul of the diary in the Chamber of Secrets, but since it was Voldemort's remnant soul, the diary's remnant soul didn't need to kill the Basilisk to leave.
after all.
The basilisk's command was an order that the basilisk could not defy, so the basilisk could not possibly threaten the remnant soul of the diary. Even so, the basilisk was still killed and its flesh and blood were drained.
There must be a reason for this.
The remnant soul of that diary has one unique characteristic: it can collect the life force of living beings to restore its power. Although it is not resurrection, it is enough to give it some means.
For example, Harry mentioned possession and taking over someone else's body.
"That guy didn't escape! He's been hiding inside Malfoy's body all along!" Ian gradually pieced together his thoughts, and this was the part that made him feel most terrified upon closer inspection.
perhaps.
Voldemort's clumsy remnant soul within Harry failed to see the purpose of his other "self".
"I hope it's not what I think, otherwise, this operation is too outrageous!" Ian walked through the long corridor and headed straight for Nick Lemay's office.
He burst through the door, then coalesced back into human form inside the office. A faint smoke filled the room, and strange instruments and reagents were scattered haphazardly. The worst-case scenario had occurred: Nick Flamel wasn't in the office. The alchemist was probably still in the infirmary, tending to Harry, who was likely from the past.
And inside this office.
Ian saw another person.
The person Harry glimpsed was Draco Malfoy. Or perhaps, the remnant of Voldemort's soul that secretly possessed Malfoy's body and used his knowledge of psychology to evade Ian's investigation.
"You arrived very quickly."
Malfoy was not surprised by Ian's appearance. When Harry connected with him, he naturally connected with Harry as well. This last connection allowed both of them to know each other's situation.
"That guy is still too trash, he only held you back for such a short time." Malfoy was standing in front of an old and complicated machine.
That was the Big Ben that Ian brought to this world.
A magical artifact that can reverse time.
at this time.
This machine has been started.
It was radiating a light that could transcend time. "Malfoy" had already stepped halfway inside. He could go in at any time, which was probably why he was still not busy.
"As expected, you were here, playing everyone for fools... You never intended to be resurrected from the beginning, right?" Ian stared at the boy in front of him with a somewhat unpleasant expression.
Yes.
He had seen through the diary's plan, but obviously he saw it too late—what this guy had been after from the beginning was different from the remnant soul inside Harry.
What, the sneak attack failed.
What sudden betrayal?
These are all illusions.
Who knows you better than yourself?
The remnant soul in the diary knew very well that the other remnant soul, acting alone, would definitely plot to be resurrected.
and so.
He was the driving force behind all of this.
One thing the remnant soul of the diary didn't lie about: he genuinely didn't want to provoke the three most powerful wizards in the school, so when the other two weren't at school, he used "himself" to draw Ian's attention.
The idea of the remnant soul in the diary has always been for this moment, so that another remnant soul can attract attention and thus divert Ian, the only person who can threaten his plans at present.
This is Ian's deduction.
And now "Malfoy's" response confirms this.
"Very clever, extremely clever. That's why I don't want to be your enemy. You're too powerful, with no weaknesses. I need to make sure you can't interfere with my operations." This "Malfoy" didn't deny Ian's words, but sighed and remarked, frankly admitting his plan.
The remnant soul Voldemort created in his later years probably never realized this until his death. The young Riddle, through his actions, proved that Voldemort indeed possessed extraordinary wisdom and cunning in his early years.
"You want to travel through time and go back to the past?" Ian looked at the settings on Big Ben and couldn't quite understand why the remnant soul of the diary would go to such lengths to perform such an operation.
And "Malfoy" seemed to sense Ian's confusion.
"The other me, the one who was born just before Voldemort died, was too foolish to think that being resurrected here would allow him to escape the clutches of death."
"I really can't imagine that this is the kind of thinking I'll have in the future... Death is everywhere. You can avoid death once, but death can come more than once."
"We have Voldemort's note on us, and no matter what, we can't escape the fate of that contract. To be resurrected as an independent individual? That's just wishful thinking." Standing in front of Big Ben, "Malfoy" chuckled softly, speaking of his other self with great disdain.
"What kind of contract is it? What's wrong with you?"
Ian was genuinely stalling for time at this point. He was also somewhat confused about what Voldemort had signed that would cause each Horcrux to betray its original self.
And in response to the little wizard's question.
"That's not important anymore."
The smiling "Malfoy" simply shrugged.
"Go back to before it all started, and I will change it all from the source. It won't happen, and I... ha, I will prove that I will live a more enlightened life than Voldemort's men."
He left behind this statement.
With a sinister smirk on his face, "Malfoy" waved to Ian.
"Goodbye, kid... no, perhaps there will be no goodbye." With that, just as Ian raised his wand, "Malfoy" stepped into the light of the time machine without hesitation. His body was gradually enveloped by the eerie blue light, as if he was about to be sucked into another dimension and disappear completely.
next moment.
The gears of Big Ben suddenly started spinning faster.
A ripple of light spread across the clock face. Ian felt the ground beneath his feet tremble slightly, and a strange power permeated the air, causing small goosebumps to rise on his skin.
"Click-clack click-clack~"
The gears of Big Ben clanged with a piercing sound, as if mocking Ian's helplessness. Watching the light in the time tunnel fade, Ian's eyes flashed, and he made a decisive decision.
"This is my machine! You think you can just freeload? You're asking for it!" It wasn't Ian's first time time-traveling, so he plunged headlong into the fading light.
In an instant, everything around seemed to be swept into an invisible vortex, with light intertwining and swirling like nimble threads, and colors constantly changing and blending, as if telling stories of different eras.
The wind whistled in his ears, the sound of the rushing torrent of time. Ian felt his body become incredibly light, as if he had broken free from the shackles of the mortal world and was swiftly traversing the endless river of time. Ancient carriages and modern cars passed each other, and people dressed in clothing from different eras overlapped in the void.
"It's still that unpleasant experience." Ian heard a mix of sounds in his ears: the roar of a steam engine, the jingling of a carriage bell, and an unknown electronic sound.
"How many years have we traveled through?"
Ian was somewhat confused.
He had never traveled through this mysterious passage for so long before, when Principal Daibudo was young, but now he felt as if he were trapped in it.
half an hour.
One hour.
Time passed by unnoticed.
He still didn't go out.
"Is Tom setting a trap for me?" Ian thought this was unlikely. Voldemort was only sixteen years old; how could his alchemy skills be better than his?
He had carefully checked it before entering the time tunnel.
"So... Tom lied to me again, his destination wasn't what it was decades ago..." Ian thought calmly, feeling that this was the most likely possibility.
The remnant spirit of the diary is deliberately creating a smokescreen. If Ian hesitates and doesn't follow, and then activates the time machine again to go back in time, he might very well be tricked by the other party once more.
Well, how should I put it?
Tom, with his full wisdom, is definitely not to be underestimated.
Just as Ian was pondering this.
Ah, the soft quilt woven from stars...
The drooping eyelashes resembled a low-hanging curtain of the sky.
We measure your breath with cypress incense.
Salt grains drew the annual rings of the moon phases on the ceramic plate.
The chirping of an unhatched bird
Uncondensed dew
Thunder before birth,
An unextinguished flame
We sip the fragments of your dreams.
Like sipping aged honey tinged with moonlight,
Let the beetle carry away the fragments of time.
Make the wheat ears bow seven times.
Until the rock strata emitted a milky white snoring sound.
Until the frost on your eyelashes melts into spring rain…
Suddenly.
Just as Ian was lost in thought.
Suddenly, a melodious and ethereal song rang in his ears. The voice was so pure that it seemed to wash away all the dust in the world, yet it also carried an indescribable sorrow.
This directly interrupted Ian's thoughts.
The song was like an invisible thread, pulling at Ian's mind and blurring his consciousness. Then, he felt a powerful force suddenly drag him into an unknown abyss.
Ian's body plummeted like a kite with a broken string, all his senses becoming blurred and distant. He didn't know how much time had passed, but the surrounding light gradually dimmed, and the outlines of things slowly became clear. When Ian opened his eyes again, he found himself in a completely unfamiliar environment.
A dim, yellowish glow swayed in the night.
A musty smell permeated the air.
It was mixed with a kind of indescribable, decaying smell. The surrounding walls were carved with intricate and mysterious patterns, which appeared mottled and fragmented with the marks of time.
Some resemble distorted human figures, while others look like some kind of ancient script.
"ah!??"
A gasp of surprise rang out.
Ian emerged from the lingering echoes of time.
He looked down from the platform where he was, and saw a little girl dressed in elaborate clothes, wearing a long coarse cloth dress, kneeling on the ground, looking up at him with an almost blank expression.
The girl had a dark red symbol drawn on her forehead, which looked exactly like a pattern on the wall and resembled a bird's claw.
"Where am I?"
Ian asked, somewhat bewildered.
And then he spoke.
The delicate object in the little girl's hand crashed to the ground. As if she had been shocked by something unprecedented, her lips trembled, and she suddenly jumped up, turned around, and ran towards the door.
"He's awake! He's awake!!!"
Old English was being uttered from the mouth of this terrified, uneasy little girl, her voice trembling with tears.
"What the hell? Wait a minute! I'm a kid too, we have a common language!" Ian said, reaching out unconsciously as he spoke in Old English, but the girl had already disappeared outside the door.
He heard a cacophony of footsteps and gasps of surprise coming from outside.
"This is unbelievable!"
Ian took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He noticed some objects on the stone platform in the center of the altar, including bronze vessels and several bone fragments engraved with runes.
"That weird Tom! What era has he come to?!" The commotion outside grew louder, and Ian heard many footsteps approaching the stone room.
He pulled out his magic wand.
Extremely vigilant.
(End of this chapter)